A coalition of youth groups under the aegis of the Consolidated Youths of Niger Delta ( CYN) has issued a seven-day ultimatum to governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State to unseal the head office of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC.
The youth groups drawn from the nine oil producing states gave the ultimatum during their emergency meeting held yesterday in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state capital.
The National Coordinator of the group, Comrade Frank Naday who spoke to newsmen after the meeting said, “From our findings and from the information made available to us, it is clear that the Commission has paid the backlog of Revenue it is owing Rivers State Government.
“We want to ask Rivers State Government to as a matter of urgency unseal the Commission’s office complex to enable workers to gain access to their various offices.
Niger Delta Development Commission is bigger than Rivers State because it covers the entire Niger Delta region and not Rivers state alone.
“We are aware that Rivers State Government is trying so hard to play Politics with the Commission because the system feels threatened that Prof Nelson Brambaifa-led administration is doing tremendously well” Naday pointed out that the NDDC led by Brambaifa has embarked on the electrification of so many communities in the region as well as water projects to enable them to have a potable source of water.
He expressed concern that their efforts at addressing their plights through the Federal Government agency were being thwarted by the government of Rivers state. “In a couple of months that the new leaders assumed office, they have been able to pay contractors and return them back to sites. The rate of construction in the Niger Delta region is really on the increase as almost all the states in the region are experiencing massive road construction.
“It is also on record that the students studying abroad in various Universities in the United Kingdom have received their stipends.
“We condemn the actions of Rivers state government in entirety and we urge the State Government to leave NDDC alone because shutting down the office is going to do more harm than good “Imagine where thousands of youths that are employed by the various contractors are shut out because of the shutdown of the Commission, it could lead them to various criminal activities” He, therefore, appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene in the matter, to ensure that the prevailing peace in the region was not truncated.
Vanguard
